In Mergers and Acquisitions—IT: Results of the Absence of CIO in Ex-ante Planning and the Absence of Key IT Staff in Ex-post Integration

Abstract

Recently, industries around the globe experienced corporate mergers. A direct correlation exists between early and frequent involvement of information technology (IT) in planning before the acquisition-negotiation (ex-ante planning) and IT integration success, and the success of the merger. However, researchers have offered a definitive answer to whether involving the chief information officer in ex-ante due-diligence planning leads to failure, or what would be the ultimate results for IT and the company. I conducted this research study in Saudi Arabia, although participating companies were primarily global in scope.